Cannabis

  • September 17, 2024

    Blumenauer Pushes House Speaker To Put Pot Bill To Vote

    U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., on Monday urged House Speaker Mike Johnson to bring bipartisan cannabis legislation to a vote following revelations that Richard Nixon admitted privately that marijuana was "not particularly dangerous" while he publicly waged the war on drugs.

  • September 16, 2024

    Pot Co. Execs Go To 9th Circ. In Investment Scam Case

    A California cannabis company and its co-founders on Monday appealed a federal court decision booting them from the securities industry and holding them liable for roughly $6 million tied to a medical marijuana investment scam, the same day that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission asked the court to order a third individual to pay up for his part in the alleged scam.

  • September 16, 2024

    FDA Warns Vape Retailers About Approval Inadequacies

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned a slew of retailers that they are illegally selling vape brands and products, alleging they lack regulatory approval to do so.

  • September 16, 2024

    DOL Faces 2 More Suits Over H-2A Farmworker Labor Rule

    The U.S. Department of Labor was hit Friday with two lawsuits attacking its new regulation protecting union-related activities for agricultural workers on seasonal H-2A visas — less than a month after a Georgia federal judge paused the regulation.

  • September 16, 2024

    Nebraska Medical Cannabis Initiatives Will Be On Nov. Ballot

    Initiatives to legalize medical marijuana in Nebraska will appear on the ballot come November, despite some evidence of fraud in the signature-collecting petition process, according to state election officials.

  • September 13, 2024

    The 2024 Regional Powerhouses

    The law firms on Law360's list of 2024 Regional Powerhouses reflected the local peculiarities of their states while often representing clients in deals and cases that captured national attention.

  • September 15, 2024

    Cannabis Co. Nabs $150M '1st-Of-Its-Kind' Credit Facility

    Green Thumb Industries Inc. secured a $150 million credit facility led by Valley National Bank as it looks to refinance debt in what the company billed as "a first-of-its-kind credit facility for the U.S. cannabis industry."

  • September 13, 2024

    NJ Gov. Signs Law To Limit Sale Of 'Intoxicating Hemp'

    New Jersey Governor Philip Murphy on Thursday signed a bill into law aimed at regulating the sale and distribution of intoxicating hemp products in the state, particularly those sold by unauthorized sellers and those sold to people under 21.

  • September 13, 2024

    Trio Of BigLaw Mergers Expected To Drive More Deal Talks

    After months of a relatively steady pace of law firm mergers and acquisitions, the trio of proposed BigLaw tie-ups announced in recent days will likely spur more firms toward entertaining similar deal talks, experts say. Here, Law360 offers a snapshot of the proposed deals.

  • September 12, 2024

    Mass. Pot Regulator Gets Acting Head, Fired Chair To Appeal

    The Massachusetts cannabis regulator has a new acting chair, as state Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg on Thursday appointed a temporary replacement after her decision to fire Shannon O'Brien, who intends to appeal the termination.

  • September 12, 2024

    UK Says Illicit Cigarette Crackdown Halves Tobacco Tax Gap

    HM Revenue & Customs said Thursday it has slashed the tax gap on cigarettes and other tobacco products by more than half since 2005.

  • September 12, 2024

    Verrill Lands Pot Pro To Build New Cannabis Practice

    Verrill Dana LLP has brought in a veteran attorney with extensive experience in cannabis law and criminal justice initiatives, including co-founding the Georgia Innocence Project, as a partner in its Portland, Maine office, as it looks to grow its services for the state's booming marijuana industry.

  • September 11, 2024

    Litigation Spending To Rise As Cases Grow More Aggressive

    A substantial number of large companies are expecting to increase their litigation spending by double digits next year in the face of more complex and hard-fought cases — and they are more open to bringing in new legal talent to navigate the matters, according to a report released Thursday. 

  • September 11, 2024

    Top Calif. Biz Bills Sitting On Gov. Newsom's Desk

    Among the hundreds of bills awaiting California Governor Gavin Newsom's signature are a number that would create new guidelines for Golden State employers, healthcare industry players, as well as artificial intelligence labeling, textile recycling and increasing criminal penalties for corporate malfeasance by tens of millions of dollars.

  • September 11, 2024

    Department Of Homeland Security's Top Lawyer Steps Down

    The Department of Homeland Security's top lawyer has resigned from his position in the administration, according to a LinkedIn post.

  • September 11, 2024

    Federal Pot Ban Out Of Step With The Times, 1st Circ. Told

    A group of cannabis businesses told the First Circuit the federal government no longer has a reasonable basis for prohibiting state-regulated marijuana, saying Congress has clearly changed its tune on pot commerce in the more than half-century since the ban was passed.

  • September 10, 2024

    Security Co. Loses $300M Pot Suit Over Lack Of Attorney

    A New York federal judge tossed a $300 million lawsuit from an Illinois security company that claimed the business was convinced to do free surveillance camera work at hundreds of New York cannabis facilities with promises of a state contract that never came, because the plaintiff missed a pretrial conference and can't represent themselves anyway.

  • September 10, 2024

    Womble Bond Eyes Growth, Not Layoffs, With New Tie-Up

    The merger between Womble Bond Dickinson and Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie LLP is not about cutting costs because of mounting competition, the international law firm's U.S. boss told Law360 on Tuesday. It's about growth in the U.S., the U.K. — and beyond.

  • September 10, 2024

    Manatt Phelps Grows Pot Practice With Special Counsel Hire

    Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP on Tuesday revealed the latest expansion of its cannabis and CBD practice, saying it has hired a former Barclay Damon LLP attorney who specializes in corporate, tax and regulatory issues for clients including retail dispensary licensees, cultivators and multistate operators.

  • September 10, 2024

    Ballot Selfie Can't Tank Cannabis Firm Election, Union Argues

    A United Food and Commercial Workers union local blasted a Massachusetts cannabis dispensary for trying to throw out a union election based on one worker's voluntary photograph of his ballot, telling the National Labor Relations Board that its precedent supports tossing only that vote and not the whole election.

  • September 09, 2024

    Pa. Supreme Court Snapshot: Benefits, Cannabis, Taxes

    The Pennsylvania Supreme Court's September schedule will have the justices pondering when to cancel tax exemptions for hospitals, if stormwater fees are taxes in disguise, and the potential resurrection of requiring medical marijuana products to be tested and approved by two separate laboratories.

  • September 09, 2024

    Wash. Justices Disbar Atty For Theft From Cannabis Investors

    Washington state's high court has ordered an attorney be disbarred for mishandling client funds, lying to investors who poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into a cannabis venture and failing to disclose conflicts of interest, adopting the state bar association's disciplinary recommendations despite objections from the lawyer.

  • September 09, 2024

    Student Vaping Down By Half-Million Kids, CDC Says

    The number of young people who vape has decreased by roughly half a million, a "monumental public health win," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but anti-tobacco advocates say more progress must be made through "crackdowns."

  • September 09, 2024

    Meta Wants Mike Huckabee's Fake CBD Ad Suit Tossed

    Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. asked a Delaware federal judge to throw out former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee's suit alleging it allowed false advertisements claiming he endorsed CBD gummies on its popular social media platform, arguing the claims are clearly barred by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

  • September 09, 2024

    NJ Court Won't Rush UAW's Smoking Law Case Appeal

    The New Jersey Appellate Division rejected the United Auto Workers' emergency bid to overturn the dismissal of its suit alleging a law excluding casino workers from secondhand smoking protections violates the state constitution, according to a Friday order.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Fishing Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Atop the list of ways fishing makes me a better lawyer is the relief it offers from the chronic stress of a demanding caseload, but it has also improved my listening skills and patience, and has served as an exceptional setting for building earnest relationships, says Steven DeGeorge​​​​​​​ at Robinson Bradshaw.

  • A Healthier Legal Industry Starts With Emotional Intelligence

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    The legal profession has long been plagued by high rates of mental health issues, in part due to attorneys’ early training and broader societal stereotypes — but developing one’s emotional intelligence is one way to foster positive change, collectively and individually, says attorney Esperanza Franco.

  • To Make Your Legal Writing Clear, Emulate A Master Chef

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    To deliver clear and effective written advocacy, lawyers should follow the model of a fine dining chef — seasoning a foundation of pure facts with punchy descriptors, spicing it up with analogies, refining the recipe and trimming the fat — thus catering to a sophisticated audience of decision-makers, says Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner.

  • Circuit Judge Writes An Opinion, AI Helps: What Now?

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    Last week's Eleventh Circuit opinion in Snell v. United Specialty Insurance, notable for a concurrence outlining the use of artificial intelligence to evaluate a term's common meaning, is hopefully the first step toward developing a coherent basis for the judiciary's generative AI use, says David Zaslowsky at Baker McKenzie.

  • Investors Can Aid In The Acceptance Of Psychedelic Medicine

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    Psychedelic medicine is ready to have its breakthrough moment, and although it still faces political, legal and communications challenges, private equity investors can play a significant role in changing the public perception on psychedelics from taboo to acceptance, say Kimberly Chew at Husch Blackwell, Charlie Panfil at the Daschle Group and Ethan Lutz at FTI Consulting.

  • Perspectives

    Trauma-Informed Legal Approaches For Pro Bono Attorneys

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    As National Trauma Awareness Month ends, pro bono attorneys should nevertheless continue to acknowledge the mental and physical effects of trauma, allowing them to better represent clients, and protect themselves from compassion fatigue and burnout, say Katherine Cronin at Stinson and Katharine Manning at Blackbird.

  • Series

    Playing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My deep and passionate involvement in playing, writing and producing music equipped me with skills — like creativity, improvisation and problem-solving — that contribute to the success of my legal career, says attorney Kenneth Greene.

  • Proposed Cannabis Reschedule Sidesteps State Law Effects

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    The U.S. Department of Justice's recent proposal to move cannabis to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act provides certain benefits, but its failure to address how the rescheduling would interact with existing state cannabis laws disappointed industry participants hoping for clarity on this crucial question, says Ian Stewart at Wilson Elser.

  • How Attys Can Avoid Pitfalls When Withdrawing From A Case

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    The Trump campaign's recent scuffle over its bid to replace its counsel in a pregnancy retaliation suit offers a chance to remind attorneys that many troubles inherent in withdrawing from a case can be mitigated or entirely avoided by communicating with clients openly and frequently, says Christopher Konneker at Orsinger Nelson.

  • Using A Children's Book Approach In Firm Marketing Content

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    From “The Giving Tree” to “Where the Wild Things Are,” most children’s books are easy to remember because they use simple words and numbers to tell stories with a human impact — a formula law firms should emulate in their marketing content to stay front of mind for potential clients, says Seema Desai Maglio at The Found Word.

  • Series

    Being An EMT Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While some of my experiences as an emergency medical technician have been unusually painful and searing, the skills I’ve learned — such as triage, empathy and preparedness — are just as useful in my work as a restructuring lawyer, says Marshall Huebner at Davis Polk.

  • Exploring An Alternative Model Of Litigation Finance

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    A new model of litigation finance, most aptly described as insurance-backed litigation funding, differs from traditional funding in two key ways, and the process of securing it involves three primary steps, say Bob Koneck, Christopher Le Neve Foster and Richard Butters at Atlantic Global Risk LLC.

  • Series

    Teaching Yoga Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Being a yoga instructor has helped me develop my confidence and authenticity, as well as stress management and people skills — all of which have crossed over into my career as an attorney, says Laura Gongaware at Clyde & Co.

  • A Vision For Economic Clerkships In The Legal System

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    As courts handle increasingly complex damages analyses involving vast amounts of data, an economic clerkship program — integrating early-career economists into the judicial system — could improve legal outcomes and provide essential training to clerks, say Mona Birjandi at Data for Decisions and Matt Farber at Secretariat.

  • Opinion

    State-Regulated Cannabis Can Thrive Without Section 280E

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    Marijauna's reclassification as a Schedule III-controlled substance comes at a critical juncture, as removing marijuana from being subjected to Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code is the only path forward for the state-regulated cannabis industry to survive and thrive, say Andrew Kline at Perkins Coie and Sammy Markland at FTI Consulting.

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